Attempted kidnapping in Cumming thwarted by child’s dad

CUMMING, Ga. — A 24-year-old man is charged with attempted kidnapping of a minor in Cumming and a slew of other charges stemming from an incident that happened in front of City Laundromat.

Francisco Javier Martinez-Juarez, 24, is charged with kidnapping of a minor, aggravated assault, simple battery and cruelty to children.

In addition, there’s a hold for Martinez placed by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

According to Cumming Police, officers were dispatched on an abduction call about 7:30 p.m. Aug. 13 to the parking lot of the laundromat at 310 Veterans Memorial Boulevard.

“He pulled up to the laundromat place and struck one of the family members with his car door as he was exiting his vehicle and he then grabbed a hold of a small juvenile and tried to put her in his vehicle,” said Cumming Police spokesman Sgt. Bryan Zimbardi. “At that point, the mom recovered that child and the dad got involved and separated the guy from his family. Evidently [Martinez] tried to run over the dad.”

Zimbardi said investigators have not been able to find a relation between the kidnapper and the victim.

The child’s father was able to scratch the suspect’s face during their scuffle and even chased the vehicle, attempting to get a tag number, but was unsuccessful.

About 10 p.m., Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office located the vehicle, a silver 2003 Audi, but the driver did not match the suspect’s description.

The driver did say he lent the car earlier in the day to his friend, Martinez. Police rode to the suspect’s home, 107 Mountain View Drive, where they arrested Martinez and took him in for questioning.

Later that night Martinez was booked into Forsyth County Jail, where he remained as of Aug. 24.